E4M1: Cold and Stranded (Strange Aeons)

E4M1: Cold and Stranded is the first map in episode The Plateau of Leng of Strange Aeons. It was designed by Mike MacDee (Impie) and uses the music track "Docks theme" from .

Essentials
You start where the last episode left off, standing over the corpse of the Spinner in Darkness. Head through the slipgate to enter the Plateau of Leng. You are immediately set upon by gunmen, and young Leng Spiders shortly afterward. Watch the houses on the cliffs above for snipers as you make your way through the valley to the upper levels. Grab the armor in the Grell pit by the waterfall and activate the slipgate at the tip of the peninsula: the first Leng Chieftain bursts out of it and begins gunning for you.

The slipgate spits you out onto a crescent-shaped plateau where Devils take potshots at you from nearby. Kill them, then grab the ammo and soul sphere on the ground below. Save the sphere for last, because it triggers a Leng Spider ambush and causes the plateau to partly collapse, making it more difficult to reach the exit. Kill the Grells that come out of the exit slipgate and jump through to escape.

Other points of interest
On higher difficulty levels, the first group of Men from Leng is immediately set upon by a pack of hungry Leng Spiders, which will chase after you next.

Secrets

 * 1) Check the cliff just past the Grell pit: it opens when you "use" it, revealing a hidden Rage sphere. (sector 71)
 * 2) The secret map  is accessed from this map. After triggering the spider ambush in the exit slipgate's area, teleport back to the first area and retrace your steps. A portion of cliff in the Grell pit has collapsed into a series of platforms. Climb them and follow the cliffs to the house: behind it is the secret exit. (sector 136)

Current records
The records for the map at the Doom Speed Demo Archive are:

The (absence of) data was last verified in its entirety on August 3, 2022.

Things
This level contains the following numbers of things per skill level:

Inspiration and development
This map is based on the first level of Restraint, an obscure horror shooter Impie made years before. It was going to be the first level of a 3D adaptation of the game, which was quickly abandoned.